HANOI, Vietnam — Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov denied on Saturday that President Dmitry Medvedev’s possible trip to the disputed Kuril Islands ahead of a visit to Japan was politically charged and said it was just about convenience.
“I can see no link between what the president does within his country and his foreign trip,” Lavrov said on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific summit in Hanoi when asked whether the visit could disrupt Russia-Japan relations.
Medvedev might visit the Kurils ahead of a trip to Japan for the Group of 20 summit in November.
(Reuters)
